I Know Why The Caged Bird Cannot Read

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Modern day society forces students to follow a strict curriculum, giving them no academic freedom. A schools forced curriculum is restraining students from academic growth because they lose interest in reading, are not being taught sufficient information, and are put down an academic path they do not desire. The mandatory curriculum is detrimental to students due to the fact students do not consider novels forced upon them important literature. In the essay, I Know Why the Caged Bird Cannot Read, Francine Prose argues that, “More books are being bought and sold than ever before, yet no one, as far as I know, is arguing that we are producing and becoming a nation of avid readers of serious literature,” (Source A). Because teachers have to obey the curriculum, students create a distaste for reading and will not read outside of the classroom. The fact that students are not reading serious literature outside the classroom is hindering students learning growth. Students are not learning because the information in the given curriculum does not provide the necessary tools for growth in an academic environment. In Sherman Alexie’s essay, Superman & Me, Alexie emphasizes, “I was trying to save my life,” (Source B). This is in reference to the fact he was racially discriminated against and was not being taught anything in the classroom. This adversity forced …show more content…
Ralph Waldo Emerson, one of Americas most influential thinkers and writers, argues in his essay, Education, “By your tampering and thwarting and too much governing he may be hindered from his end and kept out of his own.” Emerson advocates for the students’ freedom of choice when it comes to deciding on how they want to learn. By looking out for the students’ best interest, the idea of academic growth is more attainable than if they are shoved towards information they feel is
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